Order of Book Series
0

Christopher Anvil Books in Order

13 books are credited to Christopher Anvil, published between 1964 and 2010; 1 of them appeared after Christopher Anvil's death in 2009. The first book is The Day The Machines Stopped (1964) and the newest is The Power of Illusion (2010). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
13
Published
1964–2010
Pages on record
3,508 in 7 of 13 books
Reading time
58–88 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,508 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 7 of 13 titles with a page count on record.

See all 13 books in order Printable Christopher Anvil checklist

Christopher Anvil was the pseudonym of the American author Harry Christopher Crosby, who lived from 11 March 1925 to 30 November 2009. Under that name, the catalogue records 13 science fiction books from The Day The Machines Stopped (1964) to The Power of Illusion (2010). Strangers In Paradise, Pandora's Planet, Warlord's World and Interstellar Patrol are among them. Subject tags include space warfare, spaceships, life on other planets and technological innovation.

How many Christopher Anvil books are there?

Christopher Anvil has 13 books, released between 1964 and 2010. 1 of them were published after Christopher Anvil's death in 2009. 2 of them belong to the Intersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity series.

Christopher Anvil Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 13 Christopher Anvil books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.

  1. Cover of Pandora's Planet by Christopher Anvil (1972)
  2. Cover of Pandora's Legions by Christopher Anvil (2002)
  3. Cover of Interstellar Patrol by Christopher Anvil, book 1 of the Intersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity series (2003)
  4. Cover of Interstellar Patrol II by Christopher Anvil, book 2 of the Intersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity series (2005)
  5. Cover of The Trouble with Aliens by Christopher Anvil (2006)
  6. Cover of The Trouble with Humans by Christopher Anvil (2007)
  7. Cover of Prescription for Chaos/Rx for Chaos by Christopher Anvil (2009)
  8. Cover of The Power of Illusion by Christopher Anvil (2010)
  1. 1
    The Day The Machines Stopped1964 · confirmed 2/4
    1964–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Strangers In Paradise1969 · confirmed 2/4
    1969–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Pandora's Planet1972 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1972192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Warlord's World1975 · confirmed 2/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Steel, the Mist, and the Blazing Sun1980 · confirmed 2/4
    1980–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Pandora's Legions2002 · 384 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2002384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Interstellar PatrolIntersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity #12003 · 608 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2003608
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Interstellar Patrol IIIntersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity #22005 · 912 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2005912
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    The Trouble with Aliens2006 · 448 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2006448
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    The Trouble with Humans2007 · 372 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2007372
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    War Games2008 · confirmed 2/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Prescription for Chaos/Rx for Chaos2009 · confirmed 2/4
    2009–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    The Power of Illusion2010 · 592 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2010592
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Christopher Anvil books grouped by series

Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.

Intersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity in order

2 books
  1. 1. Interstellar Patrol
  2. 2. Interstellar Patrol II

Standalone books

11 books

11 Christopher Anvil titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Christopher Anvil books in order?

You only need to read Christopher Anvil books in order within the Intersellar Patrol/Federation Of Humanity series, which holds 2 of the 13 Christopher Anvil books listed here. The numbered table above gives every book in publication order.

Where to start with Christopher Anvil

Start with The Day The Machines Stopped (1964), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Christopher Anvil book?

The Power of Illusion (2010) is the newest Christopher Anvil book released so far.

Is there a new Christopher Anvil book coming?

No next Christopher Anvil book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Christopher Anvil at a glance

Died
Christopher Anvil died in 2009, according to Wikidata.
After death
Books credited to Christopher Anvil are still being published after Christopher Anvil's death in 2009; the newest appeared in 2010.
Release pace
Christopher Anvil books have appeared about one every 4 years on average.
Length
3,508 pages across the 7 of 13 books with a recorded length, a median of 448 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Christopher Anvil books, 7 of 13, were published in the 2000s.

What the Christopher Anvil books are about

8 of the 13 Christopher Anvil books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: life on other planets is tagged on 4 of 8. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.